How to increase the file upload limit in PHP on an Ubuntu server with NGINX?

To increase the PHP upload limit on Ubuntu with NGINX:

1. Modify php.ini settings

Open the PHP-FPM php.ini file for editing:

		

			
				
			
		
		sudo nano /etc/php/7.x/fpm/php.ini
	

Replace 7.x with your PHP version and use your preferred text editor if not nano.

Locate and adjust the following parameters:

		

			
				
			
		
		upload_max_filesize = 50M
post_max_size = 50M
max_execution_time = 300
max_input_time = 300
memory_limit = 256M
	

Ensure that post_max_size is not less than upload_max_filesize.

Save and close the editor (Ctrl + O, Enter, then Ctrl + X in nano).

2. Configure NGINX

Open your site’s configuration file, usually in /etc/nginx/sites-available/:

		

			
				
			
		
		sudo nano /etc/nginx/sites-available/example.com
	

Add or modify the client_max_body_size directive with the desired value (e.g., 50M) inside the server block:

		

			
				
			
		
		server {
    listen 80;
    server_name example.com www.example.com;

    client_max_body_size 50M;

    location / {
        proxy_pass http://localhost:3000;
        proxy_http_version 1.1;
        proxy_set_header Upgrade $http_upgrade;
        proxy_set_header Connection 'upgrade';
        proxy_set_header Host $host;
        proxy_cache_bypass $http_upgrade;
    }

    # Other settings...
}
	

Save and close the editor.

3. Check and Restart NGINX and PHP-FPM

Verify NGINX configuration syntax:

		

			
				
			
		
		sudo nginx -t
	

If no errors, reload NGINX:

		

			
				
			
		
		sudo systemctl reload nginx
	

Restart PHP-FPM:

		

			
				
			
		
		sudo systemctl restart php7.x-fpm
	

Replace 7.x with your PHP version.

4. Confirm Settings via phpinfo()

To verify the changes, create an info.php file in your website's root directory:

		

			
				
			
		
		sudo nano /var/www/html/info.php
	

Add the following code:

Open the file in a browser at http://example.com/info.php. Check upload_max_filesize and post_max_size values to ensure they are updated.

After verification, delete info.php for security:

		

			
				
			
		
		sudo rm /var/www/html/info.php